This is Garrison Hardie with your CrossPolitic Daily News Brief for Thursday, August 31st, 2023. 
 
Fight Laugh Feast Conference - Ark Encounter 
The annual Fight Laugh Feast Conference is a conference like no other… the festivities kick off every year, with beer & Psalms! The Fight Laugh Feast Conference is a gathering of rowdy Christians from all walks of life, and from all over the country, who want to glorify God and build God-honoring families, businesses, and churches. This one-of-a-kind event transcends traditional boundaries, blending faith, culture, and a zest for life into a vibrant tapestry of ideas and interactions. Attendees from all walks of life gather here to engage in spirited discussions, celebrate shared values, and forge connections. From thought-provoking talks to uproarious laughter and CrossPolitic live shows, the Fight Laugh Feast Conference is a celebration of King Jesus. So buckle up as we Fight, Laugh & Feast, with beer & Psalms, our amazing lineup of speakers, our awesome vendors, and of course, our CrossPolitic Live Shows this october 11-14th. Visit fightlaughfeast.com to sign up today. That’s fightlaughfeast.com.
 
https://www.foxnews.com/us/hurricane-idalia-landfall-florida-big-bend-category-3-tens-thousands-without-power
 
Hurricane Idalia makes landfall over Florida's Big Bend as a Category 3, hundreds of thousands without power
 
Hurricane Idalia made landfall over Florida’s Gulf Coast as a "catastrophic" Category 3 storm Wednesday at 7:45 a.m., leaving hundreds of thousands of residents without power, officials said. It has since been downgraded to a Category 1 storm.
 
Idalia produced storm surges that reached several feet in some areas and brought damaging winds that howled up to 130 miles per hour at one point, according to the National Hurricane Center. It also caused flooding that completely encompassed Floridian roadways when it passed the Apalachee Bay and made landfall over Florida's Big Bend region, where the peninsula merges into the Panhandle.
 
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said he had directed law enforcement to "protect people's property.
 
"We are not going to tolerate any looting in the aftermath of a natural disaster. I mean it's just ridiculous that you would try to do something like that on the heels of an almost Category 4 hurricane hitting this community," DeSantis said. 
 
He warned would-be looters that they could very well be walking into the home of a Second Amendment advocate. 
 
"I've seen signs in people's yards, and I would say it's probably here, ‘You Loot, We Shoot.’ You never know what's behind that door," DeSantis said.
 
President Biden said he had spoken with the governors of states most impacted by the storm and vowed all federal assistance, including 1,500 personnel and 900 Coast Guard personnel throughout the southeast. 
 
"Federal teams on the ground are going to continue to work with the first responders in Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, to get people to safety," Biden said.
 
At least two people have died in vehicle accidents since the storm made landfall, according to the Florida Highway Patrol. In Pasco County, a 40-year-old male lost control of his Ford Ranger and collided into a tree after driving too fast for the weather conditions, while a 59-year-old male died in Alachua County after his Toyota Tacoma plunged into a ditch and crashed into a nearby tree line, officials said.
 
The storm has been impacting Gainesville, Jacksonville, Tallahassee, Dowling Park, Lake City, Cedar Key, Chiefland, Newberry, Cross City, Apalachicola, and Perry. Its impact will also be felt in Orlando, Spring Hill, Bradenton, Bartow, Ocala, Lake Placid, Tampa, Sarasota, and Fort Myers.
 
By 11 a.m. Wednesday, the storm was a Category 1, with sustained winds of 90 mph, and its impact was being felt in Georgia, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Authorities continue to urge caution as, despite the slight decline, the stor